Comments | interimlover: the paradox of (bicycle) choice

interimlover

the paradox of (bicycle) choice

Aug 23, 2007 13:39

Living in SF is great, but exploring outside of your neighborhood requires some effort. There are buses that run regularly to all the major areas of town... it's just a pain to look up their schedules and waiting around at stops isn't particularly fun ( Read more... )

bicycles, video, cycling

Comments 57

octavekitten August 23 2007, 21:59:46 UTC

Ahhh I read all the way through this hoping for a solution to the bike predicament, because I, too, have been looking for an appropriate bike choice.... but you left me to fend for myself!

When you find the perfect one, let me know!

interimlover August 23 2007, 22:13:29 UTC

are you trying to find something for riding around the streets of LA or for longer distances?

octavekitten August 24 2007, 00:11:06 UTC

just riding around the streets! like to work and stuff:)

delicatetbone August 23 2007, 22:14:11 UTC

I honestly don't know how people can handle riding fixed in hilly cities. I live in Austin and I pretty much just scoff at the hills when it comes to my bike (sheldon brown's website suggests getting off and walking if a hill is too much for fixed). Personally 3 gears seems to be great for me in Austin, though I have a 6 gear bike.

delicatetbone August 23 2007, 22:15:08 UTC

oh and you can always switch out the handlebars

maarten August 24 2007, 00:47:43 UTC

It's easy to do, but not always a good idea... bikes designed for drop handlebars tend to also be set up to angle your upper body pretty far forward, which with flat bars would put a lot of weight on your wrists.

delicatetbone August 24 2007, 01:00:12 UTC

indeed but there are all sorts of variations of bars too...but I agree

skiplogic August 24 2007, 05:44:30 UTC

not to mention switching out the stem. its usually better to use what the bike was designed for, but if you have a frame you can always make it work somehow.

(The comment has been removed)

interimlover August 24 2007, 21:24:48 UTC

awesome, thanks for recommendation and the vids!

xaotica August 24 2007, 00:06:08 UTC

what kind of bike is that one from pedal revolution? it looks a lot like my khs urban x which i absolutely love. not that i'm a bike expert.

I don't want to leave a pricey road bike unattended on the streets of SF.

i see no harm in it so long as you get a real, heavyduty bike lock vs a crappy cable... i bought two super expensive locks for my bike even tho the locks put together cost 1/3 of the bike cost. i don't want to throw my heart into a bike that wanders away, and having my car stolen made me paranoid.

interimlover August 24 2007, 21:26:39 UTC

it was definitely a KHS, but not sure which model.

xaotica August 24 2007, 22:23:56 UTC

i am really fond of mine. granted i don't know much about bikes and it's the first real bike i've had, but i find it very comfortable to ride, not too heavy, fits my body really well, etc. i researched it and it's considered a viable bike for commuting. so i would recommend my own bike to you... esp. if you're worried about shelling out a lot of cash for a bike that could get stolen.

i am anal though and i actually use two bike locks, one is a u-lock for the body/frame that goes through one of the wheels and the other is a heavy duty chain cable that goes through the other wheel/again through the frame. supposedly thieves are less likely to steal bikes with two types of locks because it's twice as much effort/time to take off two vs. just one. but i will say that my locks are heavy and bulky and i carry them both around in a messenger bag.